


Adapt

by CreativityFlow



Series: Peter Stark [2]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man - All Media Types
Genre: Baby Peter Parker, Gen, Kid Fic, Kid Peter Parker, Superfamily (Marvel), Tony Stark Has A Heart
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-29
Updated: 2016-01-29
Packaged: 2018-05-16 22:43:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,205
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5843800
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CreativityFlow/pseuds/CreativityFlow
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>His cheeks were pink, his eyes a dark brown. His chubby fingers clutched at Tony's, and the genius billionaire play boy philanthropist felt his heart break.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Adapt

It was a week later Tony heard the news.

A plane crash. All that talk of a dangerous business trip, and Mary and her husband had died before they even reached their destination.

And now he was left with Peter. The little boy was lying on the floor, entertaining himself with a cup, and Tony watched on in stunned silence.

He had a kid. He had a child with no mother, and who was vulnerable to the world. This tiny little person had barged into his life, nearly taken over his home, and Tony didn't have a clue on what to do next.

Slowly, as though not to startle Peter, Tony kneeled down on the ground. "Hey, uh, Peter," he said. "Looks like it's just you and me now, hmm?"

Peter giggled, and beat the cup against the floor.

Tony sighed. "I'm talking to a baby. You can't even talk yet." He pulled the kids diaper bag closer to him, and looked inside. Building blocks and noise makers stared up at him, and Tony shook his head. "I'm sorry, kid. I'm not the kind of guy who should be raising you."

Peter didn't answer, and Tony took that as the okay to reach for his phone and dial Pepper.

All the while, Peter stared up at him, alternating between chewing on the cup and sucking on his fingers.

"Hello, Tony," Proper answered, sounding worried. "How are you holding up? I heard about Mrs. Parker."

"About that," Tony said, rubbing his eyes and absentmindedly reaching over to gently pry the cup from Peter's mouth. "I need your help with something."

Pepper sighed. "I was wondering when you'd call about... arrangements."

Tony found himself staring. Peter stared back, and Tony would swear the kid was begging him not to say what was on his mind. His cheeks were pink, his eyes a dark brown. His chubby fingers clutched at Tony's, and the genius billionaire play boy philanthropist felt his heart break.

Tony groaned, and covered the speaking on his phone. "You'll be the death of me, kid. I mean it, you're lucky you look like me." He turned back to his phone, and told Pepper, "I need you to pick up some parenting help books, but make sure they're audio. I'll listen to them while I work in the lab. And we'll have to baby proof the place, cause the kid can already crawl and I've had to dig him out of the cabinets twice this week."

"...Tony?" Pepper asked. "You're serious? Because you can't change your mind later."

Tony gazed at Peter - his son - and nodded. "I'm sure about this. Just be sneaky about it. We don't need the press hearing about this."

"I'll set up a conference and write you a speech," Pepper offered. "How do you want to play this?"

The press. The media. Tony remember those days, of when his own father would parade him around, cameras and reporters would track his every move.

"No." Tony was shocked to hear his own voice, but continued on. "No, the press can't know about Peter. No one can know about Peter."

"Tony, you can't just keep the fact that you have a son a secret," Pepper pressed. "There's a ton legal stuff we have to sort through."

"Well, call my lawyer and have everyone swear to secrecy. My son will not be the subject of gossip magazines." Peter shrieked, and Tony nodded. "See? The kid agrees with me."

There was stunned silence on the other end of the phone, and Tony waited.

"I'll buy the audio books," she stated. "And I'll call the legal team, see what they do. You need to start on fixing the place up; lock up the breakable things, keep the for to the stairs closed and locked, and for the love of god, Tony, get rid of those stupid weapons you have displayed in the foyer."

Tony winced. "I need locks for the cabinet doors," he said. "I wasn't kidding when I said I had to drag him out of those."

Pepper chuckled, and Tony could hear shuffling. "Do you want me to buy bubble wrap, too?"

Tony glared at the wall. "Just hurry up, would you?"

"I'll be there in a few hours," she promised, and hung up.

Tony put the phone down and laid down on his stomach, facing Peter.

"Hey, Kiddo," he said. "This is okay, right? You don't mind living with your old man, do you?"

Peter giggled, reaching forward with his chubby fingers and gripping at Tony's facial hair.

"We'll be alright," Tony agreed.

/:/

At eight months, Peter's first word was 'Pepper.' Not 'Dada' or 'Daddy.'

Pepper was so excited she didn't put him down for two hours, peppering him with kisses and tickling his belly until his eyes swelled with tears.

Tony followed behind them the entire time, begging for Peter to say his name, and threatening Pepper with a deduction to her paycheck.

/:/

Peter took his first steps one day when Tony emerged from the lab, covered in grease and hyped up on coffee.

Peter had ran to his father, squealing happily. Tony claimed the mist in his eyes was from the dirty lab, but Pepper rolled her eyes and told him to enjoy the affection while it lasted.

/:/

Obadiah and Rhodey met Peter at the same time, and despite both of them knowing about Peter, meeting him was nothing compared to the stories.

The kid took up to them immediately, demanding attention and constantly begging to play games.

Uncle Rhodey and Uncle Obie found themselves visiting the Stark home a lot more often.

/:/

Peter first snuck into the lab when he was three, and if it weren't for JARVIS, he would have built himself a new toy.

As it was, Tony came charging down the stairs, and had to carefully explain to Peter why the lab was dangerous, and no, he he couldn't come down whenever he wanted, and yes, Tony would build him his own lab that weekend and help him build a toy car.

They also ended up building a robot and toy helicopter, but what Pepper didn't know wouldn't hurt her.

/:/

Peter's first day of school was an emotional train wreck.

Tony had to stay in the car, so as to not raise suspicion, and the school was informed of Peter's predicament without receiving too many details. They were also forced to sign a contract to keep their mouths shut, and Pepper walked Peter to his classroom, with the promise of ice cream afterwards.

Despite the morning being a rocky start, that afternoon when they picked Peter up, they had to drag him out.

"One more, Pepper!" Peter whined. "I want to build one more tower! Please?"

Tony bought every Lego set he could find, in hopes to help bribe Peter to actually come home after school.

/:/

Every night, from the time Peter first arrived, Tony would sit his son in his lap and read one story.

Peter would slowly start to read along, even at his young age, and Tony tried not to think of the days when their reading time would end.

For now, he would just be thankful for how things had turned out so far.

**Author's Note:**

> Feel free to follow me on Twitter @CreativityFlow or Tumblr creativityflow-writes.tumblr.com


End file.
